Bungaraya Island Resort

Enjoyed our long weekend in Paradise! Possibly one of the easiest places to travel to from Singapore offering a true Paradise! 2.5 hr flight, 15 min trip from airport to jetty and 15 min speedboat transfer gets you to an unbelievable island resort where hospitals greets you with a big smile! Despite the fact that we were unlucky with the weather, supposed to be dry season but we had two days quite a lot of rain, it didn’t really bother us as it’s the tropics after all! We went diving during the day with the sister resort Gayana and Rechey showed us the beautiful reefs surrounding Gays island! A tasty lunch is included with the dive package and sincerely recommend this activity! Due to rain we found our favourite spot was the bar overlooking the beach. Great relaxing spend after a day of diving and enjoying the background music with a mocktail or cocktail over looking South China Sea. Accommodation is super spacious and comfortable and we didn’t really use the little living room area but enjoyed our balcony overlooking the beach and sea…

One of the most disappointing stays ever. Beach was covered in sand flies so you couldn’t use. The staff didn’t tell us there was something specific to plug in at night and so we all woke up with over 100 bites each (not an exaggeration). Service was painfully slow. Over 30 minutes for a piece of toast and at least 20 minutes for a singular cocktail. No wifi in the resort despite being advertised as. Honestly avoid! We were told we would be contacted after for some form of compensation. After three attempts at contacting the resort we’ve still heard nothing!

This is an exceptional resort. Outstanding location with Outstanding staff that charm you whilst delivering attentive, personal service. Manager Susan and Waitress Kathye warrant special mention for consistently going the extra mile. The resort offers a range of free water based activities plus chargeable diving and snorkelling which were excellent. Quirks of the resort are a cow that trails the beach each morning and a wild boar that patrols the beach!! The spa was also excellent - I haven’t been beaten with bamboo since leaving school - go for it! It’s brilliant and the staff delightful

Gaya Island. We stayed in a deluxe villa, which was two separate buildings. We did not use the lounge building at all because we didn’t feel the need. The food was a worry particularly as I am vegetarian, but the chef managed to accommodate me by tweaking some of the dishes. However, after a few days, the chef came out to meet me and devised some fabulous dishes just for me! Service with a big smile! All of the staff were terrific, particularly the man who was in charge of the restaurant ( I am ashamed to say that I have forgotten his name!) It was very exciting in the evening to see a boar (and sometimes his family) stroll across the beach. Our only niggle (and it turned out to be a big niggle) were the sand flies on the beach! We were warned about them but didn’t expect them to be so vicious. My husband was bitten on every single exposed part of his body. They are 100 times worse than mosquitoes. Be warned!! Other than that, a fabulous place!

We stayed at Bungaraya Island Resort, on Gaya Island, near Kota Kinabalu, for 4 nights. We looked forward to some relaxing days, on a beautiful tropical island, with a wonderful beach. After a short boat ride to the island, the manager welcomed all guests, and we relaxed by the pool, until our room was ready. We had a Deluxe Villa and with breakfast; the cost was MYR 2,110, about USD 500 per night. The villa was hidden in the forest, close to the beach. Our room was spacious, with a silent aircon, a good bathroom, a large bed; and TV, with access to BBC and CNN. We had a lovely balcony, which we enjoyed in the afternoons. There were two restaurants, one where we had breakfast, and a longhouse, where we had dinner. Both served excellent food, which we really enjoyed. The staff was very friendly, however, at times slow and forgetful. We looked forward to swim and enjoy a serene beach. The sea in the bay was calm, clear and warm. One could snorkel. The beach was wonderful, with white sand. Hower, to our disappointment, the beach was not clean. Unfortunately, the sea has a lot of plastic garbage which washed up on the beach. Every morning, around nine o’clock, men with black bags, walked on the beach to collect the garbage washed up, during the night. Hower, they did a lousy job and collected only a small amount of the plastic. Unfortunately, more and more garbage washed up on the beach, during the day. Much more must be done to clean the beach constantly, especially as the beach is one of the main attractions of Bungaraya Island Resort.